Honolulu Committee on Housing, Homelessness, and Parks Meeting - August 26, 2026

Note on date discrepancy: The chair stated the meeting convened on Tuesday, August 25, 2026 at 2:34 p.m., but the provided meeting date is August 26, 2026. This summary uses the official date but notes the chair's statement.

The committee considered nine agenda items, including acceptance of park donations, naming of tennis courts, three bills related to park use and fees, and a major affordable housing bill (Bill 18) amending Chapter 32 development standards. The meeting featured extensive testimony and discussion on Bill 18, which was ultimately amended and postponed for further review.

Consent Calendar

• Resolution 26-167 CD1: Accepting a bench donation from Charles and Carol Sasaki (valued at $3,500). Unanimously approved as amended.
• Resolution 26-178: Accepting a bench donation from Kuʻulei Kakela and Jason Collins (value $3,999). Unanimously approved.
• Resolution 26-180: Accepting a bench donation from the family of Ruriko Fujino ($2,718.74) for Kailua Beach Park. Unanimously approved.
• Resolution 26-190: Accepting a $4,000 monetary gift from Friends of Honolulu Parks and Recreation for community benefit projects. Unanimously approved.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Donald Sakamoto (multiple items): Testified in support of Bill 30 (farmers markets), Bill 32 (park fees), and Bill 18 (affordable housing). As a blind senior, he stressed the need for elevators and wider stairways in affordable housing projects.
• Brian Mick (Disability and Communication Access Board): Expressed support for Councilmember Wire’s CD2 version of Bill 18, emphasizing the need for a specific elevator mandate in buildings 40 feet or taller to ensure accessibility.
• Gina Thielen: Announced two additional affordable housing projects receiving certificates of occupancy, adding 125 units, and supported Bill 18.
• Sam Kim (Hawaii Regional Council of Carpenters): Testified in opposition to Bill 18, arguing that changes of this magnitude require more thorough examination to avoid disrupting the balance of the existing Bill 7 program.
• Tony Wong Cam (Cornell Pacific Residential): Supported Councilmember Wire’s CD2, citing successful leasing of 34 of 36 units at 2051 Young Street and emphasizing the need for continued affordable housing production.
• Spencer Lee (JL Capital): Supported the 75-foot height allowance, increased FAR to 5.0 in primary urban center, and unit calculation based on lot size divided by 120/130.
• Lee Weng (Housing Hawaii’s Future): Supported Wire’s version but criticized special district height carve-outs as arbitrary and noted inefficiency in subsidy allocation.

Discussion Items

• Items 1-4 (consent): Deputy Director Kehao Pues of the Department of Parks and Recreation expressed gratitude for donations. No public testimony. All passed unanimously.
• Item 5 (Resolution 26-174): Naming tennis courts at Kalihi Valley District Park after Vailima Watson. Director Pues confirmed support. Unanimously approved.
• Item 6 (Bill 30): Amending park ordinances to allow farmers markets by nonprofits. Director Laura Thielen supported. One testifier (Donald Sakamoto) supported. The chair noted the bill encourages use of underutilized parks. Bill 30 CD1 reported out for third reading.
• Item 7 (Bill 31): Establishing a program for stewardship of cultural sites in parks. Chair introduced a hand-carried CD2 with amendments (e.g., requiring draft stewardship plans). Director Thielen had no comments. No testimony. Unanimously amended to CD2 and reported out.
• Item 8 (Bill 32): Repealing specific park fees and authorizing DPR to set fees by rule, with a companion budget amendment to keep Hanauma Bay fees in its special fund. Director Thielen supported the amendments. Testifier Donald Sakamoto supported the bill to fund park maintenance. Unanimously amended to CD2 and reported out.
• Item 9 (Bill 18): The major discussion item. Chair presented a detailed slide overview of proposed changes to Chapter 32 (affordable housing development standards):
  • Lot size minimum increased from 20,000 to 40,000 sq ft.
  • Height increased to 75 ft (or underlying zoning, whichever greater) with special district limits.
  • FAR: 5.0 in primary urban center, 4.0 elsewhere.
  • Unit calculation: lot size /120 (high bus service) or /130.
  • New minimum efficiency unit size: 170 sq ft habitable.
  • Removed 80% building area limit.
  • Parking: required that buildings over 60 units use ground floor for parking to the maximum extent.
  • Retained existing affordability (80% AMI, 15-year period), rental protections, and program sunset in 2030.
  • Chair noted three areas for further work: height precision, grandfather clause, and building standards.
• Director Don Apuna (DPP) provided feedback preferring elements from Councilmember Wire’s version (e.g., height tied to TOD/special districts, no parking mandate). DPP also noted grant funding constraints ($3.5M post-construction, $3.95M pre-construction for FY27).
• Councilmember Cordero expressed concern about parking requirements, preferring alignment with TOD goals.
• Councilmember Wire noted the lack of parking mandates for market-rate units and asked for rationale. Chair explained community feedback from site visits in Makiki and elsewhere highlighted severe parking shortages and infrastructure gaps.
• Chair recommended amending Bill 18 CD1 to a hand-carried CD2 with a verbal amendment to strike the reference to LUO definition for parking. The amendment was approved with reservations noted.

Key Outcomes

• Resolutions 26-167, 26-178, 26-180, and 26-190: All adopted.
• Resolution 26-174: Adopted.
• Bill 30 CD1: Reported out for third reading.
• Bill 31 CD1: Amended to CD2 and reported out for third reading.
• Bill 32 CD1: Amended to CD2 and reported out for third reading.
• Bill 18 CD1: Amended to hand-carried CD2 (OCS 2026-0527) with a verbal amendment; then postponed to a date and time to be determined by the committee chair. Councilmember Wire and others noted reservations.